Gospel in Art: From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah

Cain Slaying Abel by Peter Paul Rubens, painted 1608-1609 © The Courtauld Gallery, London

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 16 October 2025
Luke 11:47-54

At that time: Jesus said, 'Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. So you are witnesses and you consent to the deeds of your fathers, for they killed them, and you build their tombs. Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, "I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute", so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be required of this generation. Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering.'

As he went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press him hard and to provoke him to speak about many things, lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say.

Reflection on the painting

All of us carry some measure of knowledge. None of us knows everything, yet each of us knows something! We ultimately depend on one another to share knowledge. If a task needs doing, we seek out the person who understands how it should be done, rather than attempting it blindly ourselves. In daily life, then, we give out of what we know, and we receive in those areas where we are less sure. Knowledge, at its best, is something to be shared and placed at the service of others. Our lack of knowledge makes us realise we need each other.

Ok, so in today's Gospel, Jesus speaks directly to the experts of his own time: the lawyers and teachers of the Law. They were entrusted with knowledge of God's word, yet Jesus accuses them of misusing that gift: not entering into God's ways themselves, and at the same time blocking others who wished to gain true knowledge.

When Jesus speaks of "the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah" in our reading today he is spanning the whole sweep of Scripture: from the first innocent man to be murdered in Scripture, Abel, in Genesis to the last in 2 Chronicles, Zechariah, a priest and prophet who was stoned to death in the Temple court. Both men were innocent, both bore witness to God's truth, and both had knowledge but were silenced by violence... Those who hold true knowledge of God need to be listened to, not killed and ignored. Jesus criticised and Pharisees and Scribes that they blocked people from gaining true knowledge of God.

In our powerful canvas, Rubens plunges us into the very instant of the first human murder, depicting Cain and Abel, the first two sons of Adam and Eve. Cain, rigid with rage and strength, drives a weapon downwards; Abel, in shock and incomprehension, raises his arms, his body twisting in desperate defence. The contrast between the exaggerated muscular tension of Cain and the almost fragile vulnerability of Abel is striking. Behind them, the altar fire burns. Abel's near-naked form, the cloak slipping, underscores his innocence and vulnerability. The landscape around them is sombre, emphasizing that this act is not just a domestic quarrel but cosmic in its significance: envy, sin, and the rupture of brotherhood. Rubens invites the viewer not merely to witness, but to feel the horror and sorrow of the moment: the first man to be killed in the story of mankind.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/luke-11-47-54-2025/